Canadiens News

Bulldogs Report - Feb.10, 2010

MONTREAL - A Member of the Bulldogs Slips his Collar to Join in the Games.

While the NHL has interrupted its schedule for the duration of the Olympic Games, it’s business as usual for the American Hockey League. Nonetheless, the Hamilton Bulldogs will have to make a go of it a man short for their next few games since defenceman Yannick Weber is presently in Vancouver taking part in the world’s most prestigious international hockey tournament.

So far this season the rearguard from Morges, Switzerland, has amassed a total of 23 points, 21 of them coming on assists, in 45 AHL games. The offensively-minded Weber, like most of his Hamilton counterparts, has also shown a marked improvement defensively. His +11 rating so far in 2009-10 puts him in fifth place among Guy Boucher’s Bulldogs.

While the 5-foot-11 blue liner is donning Swiss colors in Olympic competition for the first time he has played internationally in the past, wearing his country’s red and white during the World Junior Championships in 2007-08 and again when Switzerland hosted the tournament in 2008-09.

The Bulldogs defenceman has joined his good friend and former Habs rearguard, Mark Streit, in the daunting attempt to come away from Vancouver with an Olympic medal. Weber hopes to play a part of Olympic history by repeating what his predecessors accomplished in Turin’s 2006 Games. Last time around the unheralded Swiss team triumphed over Canada, shutting them out 2-0 in the preliminary round with former Canadiens forward Paul DiPietro leading the way, scoring both goals in the upset victory.

With Weber out of their line-up the Steel City squad were unable to put a game in the win column against the Texas Stars, dropping a 5-0 decision on Tuesday. Next stop for the Bulldogs is Grand Rapids, where they hope to put an end to their three-game winless streak against the Griffins on Friday evening before returning “home” to face the Adirondack Phantoms at the Bell Centre on Sunday.

Vincent Cauchy is a writer for canadiens.com. Translated by Mike Wyman.